Creamy chicken and corn pies

Name: Creamy chicken and corn pies
Cook time: 2 h 30 min
Yield: 6
Cuisine: American
Ingredients: 1.8 kg whole chicken; 1 carrot, chopped; 1 brown onion, halved; 1 celery stalk, chopped; 6 parsley stalks; 50g butter; 6 spring onions, trimmed and chopped; 1 fennel bulb, trimmed and cut into 1cm pieces; 200g button mushrooms, cleaned, thickly sliced; 35g (¼ cup) plain flour; 2 corn cobs, kernels removed; ⅓ cup chopped flat-leaf parsley; 250g sour light cream; 2 sheets frozen butter puff pastry, thawed; 1 egg, lightly whisked; dressed salad leaves, to serve

April 15, 2021

Individual chicken and corn pies.Murdoch Books

Time:2 hours +Serves:6

This recipe begins with a simple method for poaching a chicken. If you are pressed for time, you could bypass this step and use leftover chicken from another recipe or a purchased cooked chicken, such as a barbecued chicken, and good-quality ready-made chicken stock.

Ingredients

1.8 kg whole chicken
1 carrot, chopped
1 brown onion, halved
1 celery stalk, chopped
6 parsley stalks
50g butter
6 spring onions, trimmed and chopped
1 fennel bulb, trimmed and cut into 1cm pieces
200g button mushrooms, cleaned, thickly sliced
35g (¼ cup) plain flour
2 corn cobs, kernels removed
⅓ cup chopped flat-leaf parsley
250g sour light cream
2 sheets frozen butter puff pastry, thawed
1 egg, lightly whisked
dressed salad leaves, to serve

Method

Step 1
Wash the chicken briefly under cold running water, and trim any pockets of fat. Pat the chicken dry with paper towels, put in a large stockpot and add the carrot, onion, celery and parsley stalks. Cover with cold water (about 6 litres), bring slowly to the boil and simmer gently for 40 minutes, occasionally skimming any scum from the surface. Turn off the heat, cover and cool the chicken in the stock for at least 1 hour.
Step 2
Remove the chicken from the stock, then strain and reserve the stock. Refrigerate the stock for 1 hour or until chilled, then use a spoon to skim the fat from the surface.
Step 3
When cool enough to handle, remove the skin and bones from the chicken and shred the flesh.
Step 4
Heat the butter in a large saucepan over low heat and cook the spring onions and fennel, covered, for 10 minutes or until soft. Add the mushrooms and stir over medium heat for about 5 minutes, until soft. Add the flour and stir for 2 minutes. Gradually stir in 500ml (2 cups) of the reserved stock (freeze the remaining stock for another use). Bring to a simmer over medium heat, stirring constantly. Simmer for 2 minutes. Remove from the heat. Stir in the chicken, corn, parsley and sour cream and season to taste. Refrigerate for 1 hour or until the mixture has cooled to room temperature.
Step 5
Preheat the oven to 180C. Spoon the filling into six 250ml (1 cup) pie dishes. Cut each pastry sheet into 4 squares (you will only need to use 6 squares, reserve the remaining squares for another use). Brush the edge of each dish with egg, then drape a pastry square over each dish, pressing around the edge to seal. Cut a few slits in the top of the pastry to allow the steam to escape and brush with the remaining egg.
Step 6
Place the pies on a baking tray and bake for 30 minutes or until the pastry is puffed and golden and the filling is hot. Serve with the dressed salad leaves.